canada, the uk, australia, denmark, singapore, hong kong -- they have a points system. admission is awarded based on skills, experience, and education. maybe that's the answer. maybe it isn't. in a country that's always favored the underdog, we haven't really put much thought into this, have we? this fiscal cliff fight is going to end one way or another and then the real work begins. immigration reform is ahead. let's keep the conversation going. find us on facebook and twitter. our handle is cnn bottom line. "cnn saturday morning" continues now with the top stories we're watching. from cnn world headquarters in atlanta, this is "cnn saturday morning." some are calling it the next roe v. wade or brown v. board of education. the issue the u.s. supreme court agreed to take on that will make history. >> all of those who argued for

nonintervention because of the things that might happen have now happened because we failed to intervene. when is enough enough? that is the question many are asking about syria, as the death toll climbs and concerns mount over chemical weapons. now some lawmakers are saying it may be too late to stop mass destruction. and a toddler taken from the only parents she ever knew because of a little known federal law. now they're fighting to get her back, and may be on their way to the supreme court. i'll talk with them live. good morning, everyone. i'm randi kaye. it is 10:00 on the east coast, 7:00 on the west. thanks so much for starting your day with us. it was supposed to be just for laughs. humor. the listeners with a lighthearted prank. two radio deejays called the

london hospital where the duchess of cambridge was being treated and tricked a nurse to get details about her condition. two days later, that nurse, 46-year-old jacintha saldanha, took her own life. leaving behind a husband and two children. and now the deejays who played the prank are off the air. >> they have mutually decided that this show will not return until further notice out of respect of what can only be described as a tragedy. >> cnn's matthew chance has more now on the story generating outrage around the world. >> you know what? they were the worst accents ever. >> reporter: it was meant as a lighthearted aussie prank. even after this, the station issued an apology, the deejays who duped the hospital were making light of it. >> we were sure 100 people at least before us would have tried the same thing. >> reporter: now they've been suspended their jobs and one of

the nurses they humiliated and fooled is dead. >> it is with deep sadness that i can confirm the tragic death of a member of our nursing staff, jacintha saldanha. we can confirm that jacintha was recently the victim of a hoax called to the hospital. hospital officials say saldanha was the nurse who transferred the prank call to the royal ward, personal details about the condition of catherine, the duchess of cambridge, was being treated for severe morning sickness, were disclosed. two days later, saldanha's body was found in staff accommodation, a short distance from the hospital door. there had been a suggestion, some kind of complaint from the royal family about the prank call, may have put pressure on the nurse. but a royal source tells cnn no such complaint was ever made. also, this hospital rejects any suggestion that it may have disciplined the nurse for transferring the call, saying it's been supporting her

throughout this very difficult time. the duke and duchess of cambridge so happy on leaving the hospital on earlier this week, issued a statement expressing their deep sadness at the nurse's death and thanking hospital staff for looking after them so wonderfully well. if you can believe that the uplifting news that a royal baby is on the way has taken such an ugly tragic turn. matthew chance, cnn london. to washington now, where the debate hasn't changed. taxes versus spending. deciding how much of each is what's holding up any deals on averting the fiscal cliff. negotiations are pretty much at a standstill, but if you ask house speaker john boehner, he has an idea of who's holding things up. >> there are a lot of things that are possible to put the revenue the president seeks on the table. but none of it's going to be

impossible. the president insists on his position. insists on my way or the highway. >> in his weekly white house address this morning, president obama responded to boehner's remark. >> i'm willing to make more entitlement spending cuts on top of the one trillion dollars in spending cuts i signed into law last year. but if we're serious about reducing our deficit while still investing in things like education and research that are important to growing our economy, and if we're serious about protecting middle class families, then we're also going to have to ask the wealthiest americans to pay higher tax rates. that's one principle i won't compromise on. holiday hiring may have given a big boost to the jobs report released yesterday. retail hirers hired more people than any month on record since 1939. 146,000 jobs were added to the economy last month, and the unemployment rate fell to a four-year low of 7.7% partly

because thousands have just simply stopped looking for work. more good news for your wallet. gas prices are down to an average of $3.36. it is the 16th consecutive time the price has dropped. the highest price for a gallon of regular is in high where it's $4.02. he served his party as a republican, and now charlie crist is a proud democrat. he posted a twitter photo showing his registration papers, showing he is proud and honored to join the party in the home of president obama. crist ran for the u.s. senate as an independent in 2010, but was defeated by marco rubio. some are speculating this move is in preparation perhaps for another run for governor of florida. this time against incumbent republican rick scott in 2014. the supreme court has decided to take up two major same-sex marriage cases. the defense of marriage act and california's proposition 8.

doma denies federal benefits to legally married same-sex couples while prop 8 makes same-sex marriage illegal in california. same-sex marriages are legal in nine other states and the district of columbia. a decision on these cases is expected sometime in june. korean pop star psy is making headlines for a whole other reason than you might think this morning. his music video may be the most watched video in youtube history, but now an old video from 2004 has surfaced of psy calling for the death of american soldiers in iraq. that performance resurfaced in october. in his apology, psy said his performance had been emotionally charged, and "while i'm grateful for the freedom to express oneself, there are limits. i am deeply sorry for any pain i have caused by those words." he is scheduled to perform at a charity event in washington.

president barack obama is also planning on attending that event. speaking of president obama, he's issuing a stern warning to syria. don't even think about using chemical weapons against civilians. i'll talk about the implications coming up next. [ nyquil bottle ] hey tylenol, you know we're kinda like twins. [ tylenol bottle ] we are? yeah we both relieve coughs, sneezing, aches, fevers. and i relieve nasal congestion. overachiever. [ female announcer ] tylenol® cold multi-symptom nighttime relieves nasal congestion. nyquil® cold and flu doesn't. home of the legendary grand prix circuit. the perfect place to bring the all-new cadillac ats to test the 2.0-liter turbo engine. [ engine revs ] ♪ [ derek ] 272 horsepower. the lightest in its class. the cadillac ats outmatches the bmw 3 series. i cannot believe i have ended the day

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we have set sent an unmistakable message that this would cross a red line and those responsible would be held to account. >> if you make the tragic mistake of using these weapons, there will be consequences and you will be held accountable. >> syria appears to be at a turning point. there are reports of the government preparing chemical

weapons. the rebels securing the airport and more than 40,000 people dead. now some high profile senators are saying that we may have passed the point of no return. that's our focus this morning. when is enough enough? and yesterday i asked that question to a witness of some of the worst humanitarian crises in generations. cnn chief international correspondent christiane amanpour. she's also global affairs anchor for abc news. thank you so much for joining us. i want to start by playing a very famous clip of you speaking to then president bill clinton back in 1994 about the bosnian war, which at that point was going into its third year and had claimed tens of thousands of lives. >> as leader of the free world, as leader of the only superpower, why has it taken you, the united states, so long to articulate a policy on bosnia? why in the absence of a policy have you allowed the u.s. and the west to be held hostage to those who do have a clear policy, the bosnian serbs, and

do you not think that the constant flip-flops of your administration on the issue of bosnia sets a very dangerous precedent and would lead, other strong people, to take you less seriously than you would like to be taken? >> no, but speeches like that make them take me less seriously than i'd like to be taken. there have been no constant flip-flops, madam. >> so is this a question that we should be asking the obama administration about syria? >> well, you remember, randi, that president clinton was really angry with me when i was asking that question from sarajevo. the fact of the matter is the question didn't prompt intervention but there was intervention more than a year later and it stopped the war and the president enacted a peace settlement and the war stopped and peace still endures in

bosnia. i think the issue of syria raises some very important questions. president clinton himself just earlier this year said that the longer it goes without being stopped, the bigger the chance of bad actors getting involved. that is precisely what's happened, randi. that is one more reason that the administration is reluctant to intervene, because now it's not just the ordinary rebellion that it started out as with people demanding reform. it is now being joined by all sorts of jihadists and extremists. al qaeda type affiliates. and all sorts of other types. and this is what's really worrying the united states and the region. but this is, if you like a self-fulfilling prophesy, so long has this war been left to fester that it is now at the state that it is. >> right. if you talk about a red line for syria, it seems that the red line that president obama drew back in august, the moving of the chemical weapons, may have already been crossed. let's take a listen to this.

>> to the assad regime, but also to other players on the ground that a red line for us is we start saying a whole bunch of chemicals weapons being moved around or being utilized. that would change my call ccula. >> if moving weapons has already happened, have we crossed that red line that obama drew? >> well, already there is sort of a moving red line, if you like. the president clearly said movement of weapons or the preparation of such weapons to be used. now, we've seen the last several statements from the administration have just said "using those weapons." if they were used, that would be a red line. so honestly, we're not quite sure what it means. are we going to have to see them be used before there's some kind of reaction, or will they know when they're about to be used? it's still rather unclear. and actually, it's a little indicative of the entire

approach to syria. it's very unclear what the strategy is and what the end result will be. and i feel that with all the conversations i've had with u.s. officials, that they are extremely worried about another iraq. in other words, they don't want to get involved in a war that might drag on for as long as iraq did. you know, a lot of people talk about well, isn't syria the same as libya. why do you intervene in libya and not in syria. a lot of people ask me, isn't syria like what happened in bosnia? and so many, including u.n. officials have said what's happening in syria is very similar to what's happened in bosnia with the wholesale slaughter of innocent civilians. but i think from the administration's point of view, they're looking at iraq and they don't want to get into an iraq type of multi-year operation. >> and former senator george mitchell has said the united states needs to stay out syria,

while senator mccain said they need to get involved. what is at stake? >> they don't want to get bogged down. nobody is talk about putting american boots on the ground. the question is can you take other military measures that will stop this war? i think what you have now, most seasoned observers and most people who look at what could possibly be done to mitigate this nearly two-year war now in which more than 40,000 people, men, women, and children have been slaughtered and after nearly two years of this administration saying, you know, the assad must step down, and it not happening. the best one can hope for, perhaps, is that some kind of intervention that shortens this war, because without intervention, it's going to be a long war. u.s. officials have told me that despite the gains by the rebels recently, they don't see any

sign that assad or his regime are going to crack or break any time soon. so they believe that this could go on for a long time. so the question is, could you do something to shorten this brutal, dirty civil war, or are you going to do nothing or continue along the path that you are right now and have a long, extended war? >> and if we are waiting on russia to come around and pave the way, similar to that in the case of libya, do you think that will pay off? >> i don't think so. it's hard to imagine russia at this point anyway, from my vantage point, maybe i'll be proved wrn ed wrong, approving u.n. resolution. even in the latest talks that hillary clinton has had, it's not like it's suddenly kumbaya and everybody's on the same page. they're not. obviously the russians are la looking at this very closely because they can tell that their client, assad, is in a very tricky situation. but by the very same token, the

u.s. without being involved now really has not many friends on the ground in syria. so what happens if assad somehow falls? who do you then talk to? who do you then have relations with on the ground? i know they've come up with a coalition, this opposition coalition. but that too has yet to fully prove itself as an effective and consolidated opposition to bashar assad. and not just that, a coalition that can encourage his core group of supporters to defect and come to the other side. >> terrific insight. thank you so much for your time this morning. >> thanks, randi. well, she lived in three different centuries and used to drive a model t. the world's oldest person died this week. we'll take a look at the fantastic life of bess cooper. [ male announcer ] this is sheldon, whose long dy setting up the news

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what a day that was. in oklahoma, two deaf 8-year-old girls experienced a life changing moment when they heard for the first time. watch this. >> can you hear mama? can you hear me? can you? >> ruby and kate were adopted from ethiopia and moved to oklahoma. they just had docochlear implan.

>> i had a huge implant in my throat. i thought i was going to lose it. having a communication issue like in ethiopia, your future is not entirely bright. friends and family will remember the world's oldest person today at her funeral. bess cooper died on tuesday. she survived more than 11 decades. here is cnn's george howell with more on her life. >> reporter: she saw the turn of the century twice, living 116 years, the world's oldest person. her 77-year-old son tells her story best. >> she was a very determinant person and she thought if she wanted to do it, she could do it and she did most of the time. >> well into her 100s. >> and she lived at home alone until she was 105. >> wow. >> reporter: born in 1986, she

was a teacher and she was very passionate about learning. >> she kept up with the politics. read the paper every day. and when the tv came on, she wanted to watch the news on television. >> reporter: she was also a pioneer in the women's suffrage movement. >> i think she understood that that just was not right that women could not vote, could not have a voice in this country, in this democracy that we have. >> reporter: what was the event out of all of those years. what was the biggest event that had the most impact on her? >> i think it would have been the depression. that was difficult time. it taught them to be very frugal. they didn't waste anything. >> reporter: never in her life did besse cooper have a driver's license, so she never got the opportunity to drive over this bridge that was named after her just outside her hometown near georgia. she did, though, at one point drive during a time when you didn't need a license. and the only car she ever drove,

the model t. >> after my father died, she was 68 years old and she said -- she wanted to start driving again. she lived in the country. and my father had a car, of course. but we talked her out of it because we thought she was too old. now i look back now, she was young. >> reporter: besse cooper died peacefully december 4th, 2012. >> we got tickled about the fact that she went just like she was getting ready to go. she went and got a hairpiece. she looked beautiful. >> reporter: what would you say people could learn from her? >> i think to be positive in all aspects. her philosophy was hard work and honesty would get you a long way, be truthful and honest. >> reporter: george howell, cnn, monroe, georgia. money problems are at the

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welcome back, everyone. i'm randi kaye. here are a few stories that we're watching this morning. in our first story, a royal prank takes a tragic turn. and now two australian radio hosts are off the air. this after the nurse who took a call from those deejays about the pregnant duchess of cambridge committed suicide. the nurse who had worked at king henry vii hospital for four years leaves behind a husband and two children. the secret service is red

faced today after revelations the agency lost sensitive computer tapes. the tapes, which contained information on agents and even investigations were accidentally left in a pouch on a subway train. it happened in 2008, but the tapes have never been found. an investigation is under way and changes to agency protocol have already been made. one of italy's most controversial former leaders is eyeing a comeback. silvio berlusconi plans to run to become prime minister for a fifth time. the media tycoon says he's returning "sadly to public service out of a sense of responsibility." the 76-year-old resigned last year amid italy's deepening economic woes. he still faces allegations he paid for sex with an underaged prostitute. berlusconi denies that. to politics. he served his state as a republican, left the party, turned pent, and now charlie crist is officially a democrat.

crist announced he signed papers switching his party. some are speculating he made the move to run against rick scott in 2014. the latest now on the fiscal cliff. there has been very little actual movement this week on it. both sides have their proposals on the table, but it seems like no one is sitting at those tables. there's been a lot of back and forth on television, but what's really getting done, if anything? joining me now as they do every week, cnn contributor maria cardona, and amy holmes, anchor for real news on the blaze. good morning to both of you. >> good morning, randi. >> i'm sure you've been watching all the back and forth. it's getting ugly. the disagreements have been public. grover nordqvist suggested that negotiations be fully televised. but would that work or would it be better to just lock them in a room away from the cameras? amy, i'll start with you on this one. >> dana milbank said republicans

had not merely thrown up the white flag, but the white bed sheet. i think you have seen movement on the part of republicans, that they're willing to give the government $800 billion of revenue and the president hasn't been willing to meet that because of his fetish about raising tax rates on the top 2%. but as for negotiations, i rather like jeff sessions, the senator's suggestion that these are really big issues and very big decisions that should be made by our elected representatives in the senate and in the house. i'm not sure i like this idea that the president and the house majority leader, a republican, get to meet behind closed doors and get to make enormous fiscal decisions just between the two of them. >> do you think more would get done if they did this in front of the cameras? >> i actually think it should be one extreme or the other. they should either lock them behind closed doors until they get something done, let them hash it out, and then come out and announce the deal that we're not going to go over the fiscal cliff, or put everything on

television. because i don't think i thought i would ever say this, but i do agree with grover nordqvist that this could give a hint about what each party is doing and who they are protecting. i think the democrats and the president would come out looking good on this, because from the very beginning they have said that they want to protect the middle class, extending middle class tax cuts. frankly, tax cuts for everybody on the first $250,000. republicans are saying no to that simply to protect tax cuts for the top 2% of the wealthy. let's put that on camera. let's let the american people see where each party is, who they want to protect, who they want to see move forward, who they want to make sure gets these tax cuts and who doesn't. and i think that would basically make them go somewhere. >> people just might buy tickets to a battle like that one. >> i think we could sort it out right here, actually. >> you think? >> absolutely. let's do it. >> the big shocker in the senate

was the announcement by south carolina republican jim demint. listen to what he told wolf blitzer. >> after this last election, it's apparent that we need to do more as conservatives to convince americans that our ideas and our policies are going to make their lives better. this will give me the opportunity to help take our case to the american people and to translate our policies into real ideas. >> so you think you could be more influential within the conservative movement as the leader of the heritage foundation as opposed to a united states senator? >> there's no question about it. >> maria, to you first. can he really do more for the republican party from outside the senate? >> well, it seems to me that he didn't think he was doing -- that he wasn't really making that much of a difference in the senate. i mean, the republicans are in the minority there. and frankly, he doesn't have a tremendous legislative record. he doesn't have any big legislative accomplishments. and what he is known for is

messaging. what he is known for is for being a strong spokesperson. so i actually think it is a good move for him. it is a good move for the conservative movement, if what they need to do is to change their message, to change their policies and come up with a message that resonates with the american people. because clearly, the one they had this year in 2008 does not work. >> amy, i want to ask you about something that's kind of funny, but i'm wondering if you think it's stunt or serious. comedian stephen colbert wanting demint's seat. >> well, he can certainly run for office and try to earn it. but nikki haley, the governor of south carolina, will be choosing who will replace jim demint. i worked for bill frist and he had a joke, as majority leader, that it's like being undertaker. 99 people under you and no one listening. so perhaps jim demint felt that no one was listening. but as someone who actually believes in service and in the

honor of being a united states senator, i don't exactly agree with quitting your term midway after all the people who worked so hard for you, who raised money, who went to the polls to support you. it's going to stay in our seat because the governor of south carolina is a republican, yet i think that jim demint did owe his constituents a little bit more than two years. >> i actually agree with amy on that. and unfortunately, he's getting a lot of comparisons with sarah palin, which can't really be a good thing. >> what about just very, very quickly, because we're almost out of time, amy, hillary clinton, mayor michael bloomberg in new york approached her about running for mayor. she said no. do you think she'll reconsider and should she? >> i hope she will and i hope she'll lift the ban on 16-ounce sodas. we would appreciate that here. and all the bus lanes that apparently taxicabs can't use because of all the traffic. hillary clinton is a political powerhouse. whatever she chooses to do next

i think that we will all be watching on the edges of our seats. >> maria, very quickly on that. >> i don't think she should reconsider that. i think she should consider running for president in 2016. i think there are a lot of people who agree with me on that. >> the big gulp probably won't be an issue in 2016, but we'll see. i'll leave it at that. thank you both. nice to see you again. amy holmes, maria cardona. have a great saturday. >> you, too. a law designed to protect native american families has ripped this little girl away from the parents who love her. now they're petitioning the supreme court to get her back. matt and melanie will join me with their story. this family used capital one venture miles

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welcome back, everyone. 41 minutes past the hour now. a married couple has filed a petition with the u.s. supreme court seeking custody of a little girl that they planned to adopt. but that plan changed last new year's eve. baby veronica's biological father took her back after a south carolina court ruled in his favor. he waived his parental rights long ago and veronica's mother put her up for adoption. but his biological father

insisted on having her back. matt and melanie raised veronica for 2 years since her birth and their petition revolves around a little known law designed to keep native american children in native american households. veronica is part cherokee, just like her biological father. the attorney general for the cherokee nation explains it. >> it's not anyone's intent to rip a child away from a loving home. but we want to make sure those loving homes have the opportunity to be indian homes first. >> but matt and melanie, the couple fighting to get veronica back, see it differently. they join me now from columbia, south carolina. good morning to both of you. i know this is such a difficult situation for you. you and i have talked about this a few times. you have petitioned the u.s. supreme court. so i'm curious, i'll start with you on this. why do you think the case should be heard?

>> oh, it's just wrong. it's just wrong. we've had so much support from so many people, from so many different walks of life. everyone that looks at it just is baffled and just can't believe it. it's just unjust. it's unjust. it's not right. there's no reason for it. >> this is a case that -- the law, going back to 1978, the indian child welfare act, is the reason that veronica was taken from you and given back to her biological father. do you think that this case isn't a good fit for this act? >> no, not at all. i understand the reason for the law. it's just being misused. incredibly misused. in our case, it just doesn't apply. she wasn't taken from an indian

home. any other situation it wouldn't have been any contest. and if it wasn't for the indian child welfare act, this would have been just dismissed in a lower court. within hours, i believe. >> melanie, what has it been like? she's been gone now for almost a year. what has it been like without her? >> well, like anyone would expect, our lives have been turned upside down. our home is empty without her there. but we've just tried to just move forward despite that, and we've had a lot of support. so, i mean, i guess that helps late bit. but what would any parent feel like if their child had been removed out of their home abruptly and with no contact whatsoever? it's unbearable. >> and you were actually -- i

know this all comes down to this cherokee heritage, but this was something that you and your husband understood. this was something you would help instill in veronica, is that right? >> absolutely. i mean, when we found out she was actually cherokee, which we didn't know until much later, you know, we wanted to be -- you know, involved and teach her what we could. we read books about it. we contacted the cherokee tribe in north carolina to get tapes on the language. we would be willing to do whatever she needed to learn about her heritage. >> sorry, matt, you wanted the add to that? >> no, i was just agreeing. it's absolutely -- you know, she's also, you know, a large part mexican and we would

certainly want her to know about that part of her heritage. >> depending on what happens here, does this have to be one way or the other? could you foresee any type of situation where she's able to be with both you and her biological father? is there any type of possibility of that? >> it depends on the court. >> yeah, it depends on the court. but that's something that we would have certainly entertained from the beginning, had we ever been asked to grant visitation, we certainly would have. but unfortunately, that was never an option. it was just -- it was kind of all or nothing. >> it was an open adoption tr t -- from the beginning, so that wouldn't have been a problem for us. >> we would never deny her knowing her side of the family. that wouldn't be right. >> when was the last time that the two of you had any contact

with her? >> the day after they took her. we called and they answered the phone and they actually let us speak to her for a minute, and we just, you know, were trying to keep it together and said hello and we love you and she said hi mommy and daddy, and i love you back, and that was it. that was the last time we got to speak to her. >> melanie, are you at all concerned? she's so young, but she certainly has memories. but how long will those last? does she have the memory of the two of you, do you think still? are you concerned that she might forget you? >> i think that anybody who has a child that age knows that they have those memories for a very long time. they might not be able to verbalize them, but parents

sometimes have to leave their children for long periods of time and certainly when they come home, if they're in the service or something like that, they absolutely remember their parents and i think she'll remember us. absolutely. >> well, she's a beautiful little girl who looks so happy. i guess we'll all wait together and see what the supreme court decides, and if they decide to hear your case. thank you for your time again. i know it's a difficult situation. our very best to you and veronica in this. >> thank you for having us. >> thank you very much, randi. a top men's basketball coach says he's got a second chance at life. now brigham young university's dave rose wants to make sure others get one, too.

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the men's basketball coach for brigham young university

says fighting cancer is very personal for him. dave rose is now a three-year survivor of pancreatic cancer. his focus remains on the court. his team and on helping others win their cancer battles. here's cnn's chief medical correspondent, dr. sanjay gupta. >> reporter: it's a cause that's close to his heart. and this year for the first time, dave rose got to take his byu basketball team to the coaches versus cancer classic tournament. what made it all the way poignant for him is the battle that he fought with pancreatic cancer that started three years ago. >> if we can do something to try to help raise awareness, help find a cure, it's personal to me. i understand how these people feel. >> his symptoms came on suddenly, on an airplane, in fact, returning from a family vacation. >> i got really sick. to where i was lightheaded. i couldn't even actually sit up. so they laid me down. moved some of the margpassenger.

they brought oxygen, cleared the plane and brought the medics on and carted me off the plane and took me to the hospital. i had ten units of blood transfused and they found the mass and removed it, and then told me i had cancer. so that was the process. that was about a 48-hour process that changed our whole life. >> reporter: the operation was a success. the doctors removed the tumor from rose's pancreas along with his spleen. they also removed a blood clot that developed after surgery. he was back on the court just two months after surgery. he continued to take his team to the ncaa tournament. he led the cougars to their first appearance to the sweet 16 in 30 years. >> when the guys leave here today, they'll feel different than when they came in. all right, on the line. >> reporter: now three and a half years after the day he collapsed, rose is still

cancer-free. >> i feel like i've been given a second chance. there was a real possibility that my time here was going to be numbered, and now i feel like everything i get to do is really just a blessing for me, and that i really hope i can appreciate. >> reporter: dr. sanjay gupta, cnn, reporting. [ woman ] ring. ring. progresso. in what world do potatoes, bacon and cheese add up to 100 calories? your world. ♪ [ whispers ] real bacon... creamy cheese... 100 calories... [ chef ] ma'am [ male announcer ] progresso. you gotta taste this soup.

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tonight is the first night of hanukkah, the eight-day jewish celebration is also known as the festival of lights. it commemorates the hebrews' victory more than 2,200 years ago. in a statement, president obama said, "hanukkah is a time to celebrate the faith and customs

of the jewish people, but it is also an opportunity for people of all faiths to recognize the common aspirations we all share. this holiday season, let us give thanks for the blessings we enjoy and remain mindful of those who are suffering." time now to see what's trending on the web. he once ran for president of the united states of south carolina. now stephen colbert for senate? with republican jim demint of south carolina leaving the senate before his term is over, there's already a ground swell of support on the web for colbert to take over his seat. someone's already recreated an @colbertforsc twitter account. but alas, nicky haley is dashing the dream of colbert fans everywhere. in a facebook post, haley says colbert forgot a key fact about his home state, that south carolina's state drink is milk. but she did thank the comedian for his interest. sushi, anyone? take a look at the size of that

fish. it might be the largest yellow fin tuna ever caught with a rod and reel. just look at that compared to the fisherman. the fisherman battled the big fish for two hours in mexican waters about 1,000 miles southwest of san diego. the official weight isn't known yet. probably won't be known until sunday when they pull into port, but in a telephone interview, the bet's skipper said it weighed in at a record 459 pounds. wow. well, we have much more ahead in the next hour of "cnn saturday morning", which starts right now. it is saturday, december 8th. good morning, everyone. i'm randi kaye. anger and outrage are growing over the shocking death of a nurse. now london hospital where the

woman worked is speaking out about the tragedy. many states have had their say, now the highest court in the land agrees to take up same-sex marriage. gay or straight, the ruling could have wide ranging implications on america. the pentagon is make preparations in the event that it's ordered to strike syria. we'll explain what the u.s. military is doing and how quickly action could be taken if syria stages a chemical attack against its people. first, to london, and new developments in the tragic suicide of a nurse who was caught up in a prank phone call. the nurse, jacintha saldanha, killed herself friday after she was fooled into giving confidential information about prince william's pregnant wife, while the duchess was in her care. a short time ago, king henry vii hospital where the nurse worked released a statement. it reads in part, it was extremely foolish of your presenters even to consider trying to lie their way throw one of our paretients, let alon

to make the call. let's get more reaction from senior international correspondent matthew chance. >> reporter: a lot of sadness, but also a lot of anger as well-being directed against the radio station in sydney, australia, and the two deejays that carried out this prank call to this hospital here. a lot of that social media pages like facebook have been taken down because of messages of abuse from around the world that have been posted on them. also, the ceo of the company that owns the radio station has issued a public statement as well, expressing his regret and sadness, but also indicating that he does not think that legally there was any laws broken by the two deejays. they've been suspended, though, and each show has been taken off the air until further notice. take a listen to what that ceo had to say earlier. >> no one could reasonably foresee what actually happened in this case. it's incredibly tragic.

every one of us are deeply saddened. we're incredibly sad for the family and that's the focus. >> reporter: the family of the dead nurse, jacintha saldanha, have asked for their privacy to be respected here in britain, but there are family members that live elsewhere and they have been speaking to the media. the sister of the nurse lives in the southern indian state and she's spoken to the media there. take a listen to what she had to say about her sister's tragic death. >> translator: she has left us. we were wondering what happened, whether she had an accident when she was returning home from the hospital. yesterday she was to come home. whether it was an accident between the hospital and home. because she was supposed to return home to her children and husband. when i asked what happened, he was not able to communicate and he broke down. >> reporter: the reaction here in britain has also been shock. the front page of some of the country's biggest newspapers carrying the story. this one the "daily mirror." kate's agony over hoax. the daily mail, also a very

popular. kate, our sadness at suicide. finally the sun, the best selling newspaper in the country, kate's shock as hoax nurse kills herself. a reference there to the fact that both the duke and duchess of cambridge have issued a statement expressing their sadness and regret, talking about how wonderfully they were looked after by the staff here, saying that their thoughts and prayers are with the family of the nurse w, apparently committg suicide. the uplifting story of a royal baby could have taken such an ugly turn. matthew chance, cnn, central london. in washington, the supreme court will soon take on one of the most devicive social issues of our time. same-sex marriage. just a few months from now, the high court will hear arguments on two legal cases that could radically ator the legal definition of marriage in a america. the ripple effects would spread

far beyond the gay community. joe johns explains exactly what's at stake. >> reporter: after weeks of speculation, the court decided to take up two issues on the issue of same-sex marriage. the first is the defense of marriage act. windsor against the united states. edith windsor and her partner were married in toronto, canada, in 2007. spire died in 2009 in new york at a time when new york recognized same-sex marriages that had been performed outside the state. when spire died, windsor was required to pay $363,000 in federal estate taxes on her inheritance that she would not have had to pay if federal law had given their relationship the same status that opposite sex marriages get. so a pretty clean case here, and even the obama administration has already said it doesn't think the constitutionality of the defense of marriage act can withstand a legal attack. the second case the court dded to take on is proposition

8, the california ballot initiative, adding a state constitutional amendment in 2008 that said only marriage between a man or woman is valid or recognized in california. it overturned a court ruling that said same-sex couples have a right to marry. the cases are likely to be heard in march and decided sometime in june. randi? in egypt, president mohamed morsi is calling for talks to end the political crisis in the country. the opposition is calling for a boycott of that meeting. at least six people are dead after protests turned violent. anti-morsi supporters are demonstrating against the president and the new constitution. they say morsi has given himself too much power, but the president says the powers are only temporary and will become void once the new constitution is adopted. now back to the u.s. and the controversy over the benghazi attack. secretary of state hillary clinton will testify at an open congressional hearing. her testimony will follow the

release of a report by the state department's accountability review board. the state department has been under fire for its handling of the terror attack on the u.s. consulate in libya. the syrian crisis could reach a new level. with concerns that the syrian regime could possibly use chemical weapons. we'll tell you how the u.s. is reacting. i plugged in snapshot, and 30 days later, i was saving big on car insurance. with snapshot, i knew what i could save before i switched to progressive. the better i drive, the more i save. i wish our company had something this cool. you're not filming this, are you? aw! camera shy. snapshot from progressive. test-drive snapshot before you switch. visit progressive.com today.

the fighting in syria is intensifying around the damascus airport. reuters reports the government still controls the airport, but rebels say they are blockading it from most sides. meanwhile, the international community is worried president assad's troops might launch a chemical weapons attack. syria says it won't use chemical weapons against its own people, "even if it had them." the u.s. says any use of chemical weapons would be completely unacceptable.

>> we have sent an unmistakable message that this would cross a red line, and those responsible would be held to account. >> if you make the tragic mistake of using these weapons, there will be consequences and you will be held accountable. >> right now, the u.s. is just watching to see if syria is planning the use those chemical weapons, but at what point might the u.s. decide to take action? barbara starr has the details. >> reporter: with the u.s. now believing the syrian government has chemical-filled bombs, the cnn has learned the pentagon is secretly updating military strike options for president obama in the event he orders action. a senior u.s. official tells cnn a strike could be carried out with the ships and aircraft already stationed in the region. the planning is being driven by the latest intelligence, which u.s. officials say shows gas has been loaded into aerial bombs and at least two locations near

airfield. syria seems to have crossed the line, drawn by the president last august. >> a red line for us is we start seeing a whole bunch of chemical weapons moving around or being utilized. >> reporter: this week, that line seems to have shifted with warnings from the president and secretary panetta and others focusing on what happens if say sad u -- assad uses the weapons. >> the red lines are pink lines. they're not drawn with a fine pencil. and they move around a little. >> reporter: military options for striking syria spell out the case for why an attack might be called for. u.s. officials say there are multiple reports, more than just satellite imagery, confirming the aerial bombs. the reyeem is getting more desperate in recent days as fighting has raged around damascus, leading to worries assad could order a deadly

strike that could kill thousands. and unlike iraq before the u.s. war, syria's chemical weapons program is openly acknowledged by that government. >> these weapons are meant to be used only and strictly as extreme aggression. >> reporter: but the president will also be warned of the risks. civilians could be killed bay deadly release of gas if it isn't all destroyed. syrian air defenses could bring down u.s. pilots if fighter jets are used. the regime could move its chemical weapons even minutes before an attack. and if the weapons start moving around, that poses another dire consideration. officials worry that terrorists could then move in and try and seize control of this deadly arsenal. barbara starr, cnn, the pentagon. your paycheck could take a hit in january. if our elected leaders don't do something about that looming fiscal cliff. and that is just the beginning.

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welcome back. 16 minutes past the hour. no one can be sure if the white house and congress will steer the country away from that so called fiscal cliff, which now is just 24 days away. but it's probably a good idea for you and your family to be prepared just in case. earlier, i spoke with stephanie rule of bloomberg tv about what could happen if the deal is not reached. >> people talk about the cliff like it's this major event, which it is. but almost like a y2k. from a paycheck perspective, you will see less money in your

paycheck if we do fall off the cliff. but as far as the economy goes, it's not really a cliff, one specific act. it's going to be more like a slope and we are going to see most likely an economic slowdown where jobs are going to slow down because we're not going to see companies expand, we're not going to be seeing them grow. and this economy that we've been hoping to see a recovery could really head in the other direction, but it's not something we're going to see january 2nd, 3rd, and 4th. it's really overthe long haul. >> people hear you say lower paychecks. what about the tax hike? >> it's a negative. people need to prepare, that come the new year, they are going to get less money in their paychecks. for those who hadn't had a job for a very long time and who are living paycheck to paycheck, this is a big issue. earlier this week, we spoke to the governor of pennsylvania who said people are pouring in, reaching out to their local legislators saying help us get some compromise and some resolution because in this

economy, people simply can't afford it. and it is january 2nd, right after the new year, when it's going to affect paychecks. one of the things that's so disappointing is this fiscal cliff didn't come out of nowhere. we've known it was coming. it was rolling our direction. but one of the things frustrating americans is it seemed like the cliff was being ignored or just put on hold while the campaign was going on and it was the day after the election. we saw the dow drop 300 points and suddenly everyone woke up and said we've got to face this cliff. the question is can they really address these issues in the next 24 days with the president heading for vacation, congress about to go home. doesn't feel good. >> no. and in terms of we're waiting to find out if we're going to go over the cliff, but we're already seeing the effects of it, aren't we? we have a lot of americans without jobs, and just the fear of going over the cliff is even affecting that, right? because it's affecting hiring. >> without a doubt. you wonder, is it affecting big business or small business. corporate ceos are simply

sitting on their hands. you're seeing u.s. corporations with more money on their balance sheet than they've had in years. but the fact that they're paying more health care cost, they don't know what the tax climate is going to look for them, they're simply not growing their business. we're not seeing innovation. that's what creates jobs. that's what gets these companies doing well. it improves what they're doing in business. if people aren't making more money, they're not simply not spending. >> and what do you make of those that say maybe it's better that we do go over the cliff? some say we're not going to get the job done unless we really feel the pain. >> those are people who really have long-term views, and that may be a resolution. earlier this week, we spoke to barry sternlicht, who said actually getting there, back to zero, it's almost impossible, so even in the long-term, if it helps the country organically

grow, it's very difficult to get there, and very few people want to see us fall off the cliff. they want to get us back into an economic recovery. they want the u.s. equity markets to improve because that affects your 401k. it affects your pension. it affects real people today. >> yeah. 24 days and counting. nice to see you again. thank you. >> great to see you, randi. enjoy the holidays, but don't forget to stay active. a fitness expert demonstrates easy ways to burn off those extra calories a t home. two years ago, the people of bp made a commitment to the gulf.

bp has paid over twenty-three billion dollars to help those affected and to cover cleanup costs. today, the beaches and gulf are open, and many areas are reporting their best tourism seasons in years. and bp's also committed to america. we support nearly 250,000 jobs and invest more here than anywhere else. we're working to fuel america for generations to come. our commitment has never been stronger.

the first day of winter less than two weeks away now,nd the holidays are quickly approaching, which means cold weather, big meals and a whole lot of yumminess like those desserts. so who has time to hit the gym? well, that's why we're going to she you how to burn off some calories around your home and without any equipment. with us now is desirae

nathanson. she's a certified nutrition expert, former miss fitness of new mexico and the official personal trainer of the atlanta hawks cheerleaders. so you say that people shouldn't worry about hitting the gym. >> no, you just want to focus on being less sedentary. you want to move when you can. it's not about necessarily getting to the gym and getting on a treadmill or elliptical machine. you just want to move. if you have a desk job, you want to get up every hour, move around a few minutes a day. if you sit a lot. you really want to stand up when you can. i feel like we're going to evolve into this hunch backed society. so you want to focus on standing up, engaging the core and moving around. >> i know you brought a few problems with you. one of them kind of scares me. it's a broom. what are we doing with that? >> we're going to be cleaning. >>. >> okay, good. >> you can do several things. you can put the broom behind your neck. stand feet shoulder width apart, engage your abs and you'll twist side to side. so we'll work our obliques here,

just with a brook so you can be sweeping, and then in the middle of sweeping, you can do the obliques. >> so you don't need those expensive brooms. >> exactly. you wican also do a squat and press. squat down and press up. so there's lots of things you do with a broom. >> besides cleaning. i don't like to clean, so the broom is good for other things. i see you also brought a couple of cans of something over there. >> yes. >> and water bottles. >> water bottles can also be used. >> what do you do with those? >> you can do so many different exercises. curls are one of them. i like focusing on exercises for the back part of the body. >> the favorite party right there. >> exactly. so you can do something called tricep kickbacks. you want to stand with your feet back, upper arms parallel to the ground. >> and you see right there the muscle. that's my favorite muscle. i don't know about you at home,

but that is the muscle to get. okay, what about a chair? you can actually get a workout while you're sitting in a chair? >> yeah, you can do so many things. if you do have a desk job, you can take this break every hour, on the hour just do a few different exercises. one thing you can do is dips. you can do a more beginning exercise would be just to push yourself up off the chair. you can also take yourself to the edge of the chair and do your dip here's, again, working our triceps. you can also do squats. touching your butt to the chair and standing back up. >> that's great. >> and push-ups, of course you the k do here because getting on the ground at your office might be awkward. >> yeah, people are going to wonder. you can do push-ups on the back of the chair. like that. >> so if somebody looks at these and goes okay, that's good. but what if somebody is more advanced and want something more demanding? >> a few exercises -- one is

called a burpee. i don't know if i can do it here. >> let's do it. >> it's total body. you're working everything. you come down place your hands on the ground. jump out, jump up, and that's it. >> it's not so easy, trust me. desirae nathanson, great to have her on, as always. life in syria turned upside down. we'll show you what the front lines in aleppo look like as the war there rages on. and if you're leaving the house right now, just a reminder, you can continue watching cnn from your mobile phone. you can also watch cnn live from your laptop. just go to cnn.com/tv. well, if it isn't mr. margin.

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in syria, more than 40,000 people have been killed since the fighting began 20 months ago. daily life has been replaced with the sound of bullets. and streets of aleppo have turned into a battleground. arwa damon has the details. >> reporter: for two months, the streets and allies have been a war zone. part of a bigger battle for control of aleppo, syria's

largest city. this father of four is one of the rebel fighters here. this is our country, our homes that are being destroyed, he tells us. he used to sell thread. now he runs logistics for his unit. so what he is explaining to us is that this was street to street fighting, and it took his unit quite some time to advance, and right now they have the tractor here because they're trying to clear out this road so that balances and vehicles can begin to move through. blankets hang across one alleyway to block government snipers' line of sight. the shooting is coming from there. the sniper, one of the fighters points out. they take us further forward. crawling through holes punched

between buildings. they're just telling us that it's because of the snipers that they have to move through these buildings like this. it's an urban version of first world war trenches. they've edged forward by just one block. going any further is back breaking work. a rebel dashesstre street carrying a makeshift rocket launcher. it's a plastic tube. he later displays the rocket. this is a homemade rocket that was manufactured by the fighters themselves in this very battlefield. but they can't find the sandbags to stabletize launcher. the weapons they carry a spoils of war, captured from government

forces. but they also make a promise. there is a message we have, one of the older fighters vows. when this is over, the guns will be handed over. i am just fighting to see my house down the road, he says. it's hard to fully absorb the scale of the devastation here, how entire buildings seem to have folded down upon themselves. and then one continues to see traces of the lives of the civilians that call these buildings home, like the clothing that's just hanging right there. or children's books like this one, the pages of it that we picked up from the rubble. but this conflict can be surreal. just a couple of blocks away, local barbershop is open, as are a handful of other stores. women crowd around us, eager to talk, but not be filmed. both sides have hurt us, wronged

us, one says. basic supplies are available here, although prices have skyrocketed. bread, bread, we want it so badly, it's like a drug, this woman tells us. if someone has breakfast, they can't afford dinner. please have mercy, they beg. on the street, we meet four boys that ask if we think it's safe enough for them to go back home. they talk of tanks firing and seeing other children lose limbs. they say what they've witnessed has made them all decide to be doctors, to save the victims of war. arwa damon, cnn, aleppo. >> and the conflict in syria may reach a new level with the possible threat of chemical weapons looming. earlier, i spoke with former senator george mitchell. he's president obama's former middle east envoy. i asked him what the u.s. can do

to solve the crisis in syria. >> i believe the united states should not intervene millitarily in syria. that's what i said. i do not favor standing aside. there are many other ways in which we can and have been involved, primarily diplomatically, economically, and supporting other of our allies who are providing direct assistance to the rebels in syria. but i want to remind people, we just finished a ten-year war in iraq, we're trying to end a 12-year war in afghanistan. a military intervention by the united states now, to have a third war in the middle east going, i think would be a mistake and it wouldn't solve the problem. that's the central issue. it wouldn't solve the problem. you said 40,000 people have died in your preparatory report here. that's true. that's a terrible tragedy. every one of them. but five million people have died in the congo. should we intervene there? of course not. people want us to intervene in

somalia, in sudan, other places. we have to be very careful about starting wars in far flung place every time there's a serious tragedy. >> the conflict, as you know, has already spilled over the borders in turkey and lebanon. you talk about getting involved. if not the united states, who does need to get involved millitarily? >> well, i don't think it's going to be resolved by outside military intervention. one of the problems in syria was the problem in lebanon, a problem in other parts of the middle east, is that these conflict are extended and continued by outside actions, in effect proxy wars being fought by neighbors who pour arms and money into the region. right now, iran is pouring millions of dollars and a lot of people and arms into syria to prop up assad's regime. governments on the other side. i think that the regime will fall. i think there's going to be a very long and difficult internal

struggle for governance after that occurs and we should be preparing the ground, as i think the administration is trying to do for a unified opposition force that will bring about change peacefully after assad's regime fall. but i repeat, direct american military intervention, in my judgment, will not solve the problem and will entangle us yet further in conflicts in far flung countries where it's very difficult to sustain support in this country. >> once again, that was george mitchell, former senator and former middle east envoy for president obama. former south african president nelson mandela is in the hospital. a government statement says he was admitted to a hospital today to undergo testing. it says mandela is doing well and the tests are just routine for someone his age. mandela is 94. if you think people are only reading books on tablets, well, think again. how one traditional bookstore is

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it gives us 5x the rewards on our internet, phone charges and cable, plus at office supply stores. rewards we put right back into our business. this is the only thing we've ever wanted to do and ink helps us do it. make your mark with ink from chase. as the holiday as approach, how are some businesses able to keep their doors open while others are failing? tom foreman went looking for answers in today's "american journey." >> amid the bustle of broadway, the bad economy and the crushing

competition, at the strand, the show goes on. started more than 80 years ago, this independent bookstore has beaten the odds, surviving the great depression, world war ii, and fred bass, who was a baby when his dad started the strand says the store is enduring these tough times, too. >> mainly by having good books and good prices, we've been selling a lot of new books at discount, but it's mostly used books or bargain books that we sell. or out of print books. >> the strand's eclectic approach owes its appeal to the trivial and treasured on the shelves. like this rare signed copy of "ulysses." but the success is about more than inventory. employees must possess a deep knowledge of books and embrace the idea that they are maintaining a business, yes, but

also a community. >> there's just a comfort here where people feel willing to open up and to have 30-minute conversations with you in the aisles, even when you probably should be working. >> reporter: the strand has kept up with the times, too, to compete with megabookstores and internet retailers, it now offers almost all of its books online. still, it could be argued that in these days of everything moving faster, the strand's winning edge really comes from going slower. >> there's something about being able to just browse through all these aisles and hold a book and read a book and look at a book. that's wonderful. >> reporter: the bottom line of all this, even with the economy down, sales at the strand are up, and another great season of holiday shopping is going on the books. tom foreman, cnn. another huge retailer, amazon.com, seems to be taking over the shopping world. tom foreman takes a look at

amazon's big plans today at 2:30 eastern on "in focus." tonight's awarding of the heisman trophy will be life changing for one of college football's greatest players. and it could be historic for the heisman itself. when traveling to other cities and countries, the best way to get a real taste of the place is through local food. cnn ireport has teamed up with "travel & leisure" magazine to create a global list of 100 places to eat like a local. here is dan rivers in bangkok, thailand, with a sample. >> reporter: i'm dan rivers in bangkok, and when i want to eat local on a rainy afternoon, there's nothing better than wung li. they do amazing seafood here.

rice. what else would you suggest? do you have any prawns? my favorite dish is crispy pork. how do you get the pork so chris sni. >> leave it one hour. then we clean it and then make it dry. make it dry first. and then fry with oil. >> this soup here, very famous. >> yeah. with mushroom and lemon. and a little bit milk. >> and it's quite spicy as well. >> spicy. chili. 200 different on the menu. >> reporter: 200 recipes on the

menu. why do so many people come sneer. >> cheap. and fresh. and delicious. >> reporter: right. so those places in guide books are for tourists. go to nugan lee if you want to eat like a local. >> that looked pretty good. all you have to do is go to ireport.com/1 ireport.com/100places, send us a photo of your favorite restaurant and the dish, tell us why it's special, how you discovered it. the definitive list of 100 places to eat like a local will be revealed in march and some ireporters will be on that list, so stay tuned, you might be one of them. [ male announcer ] this december, remember --

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excitement is building for tonight's awarding of the coveted heisman trophy. this year could be one for the record books. the front-runner is johnny manziel or johnny football, they call him. if he wins he will be the first freshman in the 77-year history of the heisman to take the prize. another candidate is manti teo and kansas state quarterback colin klein, the leader in the race before manziel's late push. another college football tradition continues hours from now in philadelphia. army versus navy. its significance won't be about points scored but the symbolism behind the annual event.

>> this game represents more than just a football game. it represents a lot of what is good in our country. >> this is a big deal. our guys dream about this, think about this from day one. >> everything about the naval academy is beat army. >> we have two schools with great respect for each other. on this one day they set aside the respect in the spirit of competition. >> you run through the tunnel. one half is navy and the other half is army. >> there are many people around the world watching the game. >> there's no career in the nfl, big time money, media recognition. just guys tackling like they were back in high school playing

football. >> if both records were 0-10 going into it we would have the same intensity if we were undefeated. >> we don't hate each other. we dislike each other when we're playing but when the game ends we're brothers in arms. >> after the game you hug them. you know what they are about to endure. every one of us is going to serve our country. we'll be put in harm's way whether on a ship, on the ground or in an area. -- airplane. >> not only will they battle hard in this game and be on the same team after this, but a lot of times they count on each other to save each other. >> protecting each other and serving our country is something we value greatly. >> cnn newsroom starts at that time top of the hour. joe is in today.

how's she doing? >> she's sending in e-mails. >> got the twins at home but you're here with an action-packed afternoon. >> we'll pick up on the same-sex marriage case the supreme court decided to take. we were talking about it yesterday in washington. we want to ask if the court gave itself an out in case they didn't want to reach merits of the defense of marriage act. maybe they gave themselves a way to not decide the issue. >> i know you'll be watching that one. >> you got that right. let's see, what else? we're talking about the pope today. the pope is on twitter. >> right. he's writing books. he's on twitter. he's busy. >> how's that going to work out for him? we talked to his senior communications adviser in rome. you have to ask if the pope is an iphone guy or a blackberry guy. >> what does he tweet about? >> really. does he send e-mails? >> who does he follow?

that's what i want to know. does he follow justin bieber? >> right. so far he has 500, 600,000 followers. he's only following seven people. >> exactly. you and i are not one of them. >> we also want to talk about football. i heard you talking about football a minute ago. the thing that fascinates me is the undercurrent in professional football talking about getting rid of the kickoff which definitely sounds like sacrilege to pro football fans. we want to see how it would work and why they want to do it. >> that's part of the fun of it. >> maybe we want to get rid of injuries. i don't know. >> there's got to be another way. >> it would be rugby, i think. >> there you go. you made all of that sound very exciting. >> yeah. >> we'll see you in a few minutes, joe. thanks. the agency in charge of protecting the president is under investigation.

this time after extremely sensitive information vanishes without a trace. the details when we return.

the u.s. secret service finds itself at the center of an investigation over a possibly damaging security breach. tapes containing highly sensitive information were left behind on a subway. brian todd has more on the disappearance and the potential fallout. >> reporter: law enforcement and congressional sources tell cnn the u.s. secret service is being investigated for a potentially damaging loss of information. the data was on two back-up computer tapes which contain

very sensitive personnel and investigative information, according to our sources. >> you lost the drive containing the identity of every agent. >> reporter: it might remind you of the new james bond movie "skyfall" where the villains steal a device with top secret information on british agents. but in this case, our sources say, the tapes were left by a contractor on a train in metro rail subway system. the incident occurred in february of 2008, but is now the subject of an investigation by the department of homeland securities inspector general. that office is not commenting on why the probe is going on now. i asked former fbi counterespionage agent o'neil about the loss. >> some of the information could cause lives to be at risk if someone wanted to get at the families of high-level government worker or someone they perceived as someone who worked against a terrorist cell. >> reporter: o'neal took down robert hanson who spied for the

russians. he's depicted by ryan phillippe in "breach." the secret service says no lives were endangered by the 2008 loss. no fraud occurred as a result. but how did this happen? according to our sources, the contract was transporting two tapes in a pouch from secret service headquarters in washington to a now closed data facility in maryland. the sources say the contractors got off a metro train and realized the pouch was left behind and the secret service and metro police were contacted and an aggressive search took place, but one source tells us the tapes have not been recovered. in a statement, the secret service said these back-up tapes were not marked or identified in any way and were protected by multiple layers of security. they could not be accessed without the proper equipment, applications and encoding. still, why put sensitive information about agents or anything else on a removable disk?